Question

Fred, a tennis coach, insists that he can make any reasonably healthy individual into an internationally competitive tennis player. Fred is echoing the thoughts of: A. Sigmund Freud. B. Iohn B. Watson. C. Abraham Maslow. D. William lames.

Short answer

Answer: B. John B. Watson.

Step-by-step solution

Understanding the psychologists' beliefs

Let's briefly go over the main beliefs of the psychologists mentioned in the options: A. Sigmund Freud: Founder of psychoanalysis, Freud believed that behavior is driven by unconscious desires and motives, usually rooted in childhood experiences. B. John B. Watson: A major proponent of the school of thought known as behaviorism, Watson believed that behavior is the result of environmental influences and conditioning, and that humans can be shaped by controlling their environment. C. Abraham Maslow: Best known for his hierarchy of needs theory, Maslow proposed that humans have an innate drive to fulfill their potential and strive for self-actualization. D. William James: A philosopher and psychologist, he is known for his belief in pragmatism, meaning that the truth of an idea should be judged by its usefulness.

Identifying the psychologist with a similar belief to the tennis coach

Based on the above information, we can deduce that the tennis coach's belief aligns most closely with the work of John B. Watson. Watson's belief that human behavior can be shaped by controlling their environment aligns with the tennis coach's idea that he can train anyone to become an internationally competitive tennis player. Therefore, the correct answer is: B. John B. Watson.

Key concepts

Environmental Influences

In the world of psychology, the notion of environmental influences refers to how surrounding environments can shape a person's behavior. This concept is central to the philosophy of behaviorism. It implies that humans are not only the product of their biology but are also significantly shaped by their experiences and interactions with the environment.
This can include factors such as:

• Social environment, such as family and friends
• Cultural influences, like societal norms and beliefs
• Physical surroundings, including living conditions and available resources

By understanding the environment as a platform that molds individuals, psychologists like John B. Watson were interested in exploring how controlled changes in a person's environment could lead to predictable changes in behavior. This approach underscores the potential for altering behavior through targeted interventions.

Conditioning

Conditioning is a fundamental concept in behaviorism, referring to the process through which behaviors are learned or modified in response to environmental stimuli. It involves creating associations between a behavior and a consequence, reinforcing (or discouraging) certain actions.
There are two primary types of conditioning:

• Classical Conditioning: This involves learning through association. An originally neutral stimulus becomes associated with a meaningful stimulus, eliciting a conditioned response. An example is Pavlov's dogs, which salivated at the sound of a bell because it was consistently paired with food.
• Operant Conditioning: This is about learning through rewards and punishments. Here, behaviors are strengthened or weakened based on the consequences. A behavior followed by a reward is likely to be repeated, while one followed by a punishment may decrease in frequency.

Conditioning explains how habits form and how certain stimuli come to evoke specific reactions, allowing for behavior modification through strategic conditioning methods.

John B. Watson

John B. Watson, a trailblazer in the field of psychology, was the founder of the behaviorist movement. He believed strongly that behavior is largely a result of environmental influences and conditioning, essentially arguing that people can be trained to perform any task given the right environmental controls and stimuli.
Watson's most famous experiment, known as the Little Albert experiment, demonstrated how emotional responses could be conditioned in humans. By pairing a loud noise with the presence of a white rat, Watson conditioned a fear response in a young child, illustrating the power of environmental factors in shaping behavior.
His work suggested that with adequate management of environmental factors, human behavior could be predicted and controlled, which aligns with the views of Fred, the tennis coach in the original exercise. Watson emphasized a scientific approach to understanding behavior, focusing less on innate traits and more on how external factors affect actions.